TopButton Girl
by bookstoreromantic
Summary: Henry tries to make Mary Margaret feel better the first day back at school following 1x13. One-shot.


Characters: Mary Margaret, Henry

Description: Henry tries to make Mary Margaret feel better the first day back at school following 1x13. One-shot.

Top-Button Girl

Mary Margaret Blanchard, despite what she told both herself and a very worried Emma, was not ready for this day.

The last time she had stepped foot in Storybrooke Elementary she had been ashamed, embarrassed, and humiliated. Feelings which all still hung over her, now coupled with fear and a heaviness that she couldn't shake off. She had spent all of last night rehearsing stock phrases for the other teachers. "It doesn't have anything to do with work." "I'd rather not talk about it." "I don't know anything about Kathryn's disappearance."

That last one would be the hardest to face. As if it weren't enough that she was now (correctly) labeled a home wrecker and (incorrectly) a tramp but the woman's whose marriage she had helped destroy had disappeared, leaving only a crashed vehicle on the edge of town for clues.

Emma was investigating. She was the sheriff, of course she was. It was her job. Her roommate was supposed to question David later in the morning and Mary Margaret tried to dismiss the feelings of concern that arose for him. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't deny that she was worried about him. She was worried for all of them. For Kathryn, who had vanished seemingly into thin air, and for herself – a popular suspect in the disappearance. Town gossip didn't care that she had been in tears on her bed at the time of the accident.

One of her colleagues was the one who had found Kathryn's car on the side of the road. As Mary Margaret entered the school she saw him out of the corner of her eye speaking to a bunch of other teachers in the lounge. Kathryn's disappearance and the scandal of it all was front page news – no thanks to Sidney (or Regina, she was sure). Though she couldn't hear them it was obvious that they had stopped talking as she passed by. Mary Margaret kept her head down and went straight to her classroom, clutching her student's materials close to her chest. Her fingers played nervously with the delicate pearl buttons on her sweater – a top-button girl once more.

Somehow, she made it through the morning. Her kids, bless them, were generally the same energetic misfits they always were and keeping the class running took her full attention. Mary Margaret's façade of being collected and in control didn't even crack when she confiscated a note of hurtful gossip being passed. She simply reminded her students that passing notes was not allowed and threw the crumpled paper into the garbage without a glance. She thought Emma might be proud of her for that. (Proud for not breaking down before a class of ten-year olds… her standards were definitely lowered today.) As the lunch bell rang she pretended not to hear Alison telling Michael that her mommy said Miss Blanchard had done a bad thing to another lady. She would not let herself fall apart today. She would keep it together, even if it took every single glittery glue stick in the crafts bin.

Mary Margaret shut the door for an hour of blissful solitude and turned back around to find Henry standing behind her, lunch bag in one hand and a piece of paper in the other.

"You shouldn't listen to them Miss Blanchard. Bad things happen to people when they try and leave Storybrooke. What happened to Kathryn was part of the curse, but Emma's gonna find out where she is."

"I know Henry, Emma is working very hard to find Kathryn." Her student frowned down at his shoes. "Is everything all right?"

"It shouldn't have to be like this is all. It's the curse making everything hard."

Mary Margaret leaned down so that she was at eye level him. "Oh Henry. Sometimes the curse is of our own making."

He looked like he wanted to argue that it wasn't but instead he handed her the drawing in his hand. "I made this for you. I thought it might make you feel better."

She took the paper from him and smiled sadly. He had drawn both of them standing in a forest together with Emma and David, all four holding hands and smiling. "That's very thoughtful, thank you."

"I added bluebirds," he said, pointing to the tree branches. "They're your favorite, right?"

"Right," she nodded and felt her smile became just a little more real.

"It'll be alright Miss Blanchard, you'll see. Emma found the book again. Things will get better now. I promise."

Mary Margaret put the drawing down on a student's desk and wrapped him up in a big hug. She wanted so badly for things to be better. For things to be right again. "You're a sweet boy Henry. I would be the luckiest grandmother in the entire world."

He beamed at her. "Have a good lunch Miss Blanchard."

"Have a good lunch Henry."

She closed the door again behind him and brought the drawing back over to her desk. It hurt a little to see her standing there together with David but the hope in the picture made her heart sing. Mary Margaret tucked it gently into her purse and sat down to eat lunch by herself.


End file.
